Police say 41-year-old Ryan Lee Bergner broke into the woman's home in Hammond Monday night. The 51-year-old woman called 9-1-1 and hid in a closet with a gun she had been given for protection. She says she shot him when he opened the closet door and started choking her.

His family says Bergner was a good man. Neighbors say the woman's action is understandable.

"There is no way there should be any charges on her. It is justifiable homicide. She was on the phone with police. They told her exactly what to do. What more are you asking for when some guy's coming at you? I mean, that's defense," said Alison Joseph, woman's neighbor.

She said she was watching television when she heard a window break and called 911. She was hiding in a closet when she says 41-year-old Ryan Bergner came into the room. That's when she shot him with a gun she acquired that day. (emphasis added by EMB)

Earlier this week, the prosecutor decided not to charge the woman. (emphasis added - EMB)

This is a prime example of how a person turned the tables on her attacker and refused to be a victim. By defending herself she very well may have saved her own life.

As good as the police are, they simply cannot be everywhere. As the 911 audio shows, it can take several minutes for the police to get to you when you need them most. This woman did everything she could to avoid this man. Everything that all of the anti-gun people tell you to do. Call 911. Lock the doors. Retreat to another room. Hide.

None of which did any good. He still came after her. Locked doors did not stop him. Locked windows did not stop him. A call to 911 did not stop him. An armed citizen did.

In 2007, the federal government's spending rose to an astounding $2.8 trillion– the equivalent of $22,000 per household. Growth in federal government spending, however, rarely translates into better services for the American people. Solutions for many public policy problems are best found in the private sector, and then at the State and local level–not in Washington, DC. Indeed, the federal government loses billions every year due to ineffective programs, poor management, waste, and fraud. And, the problem is getting worse. Within the next five years, federal spending is expected to reach more than $3.2 trillion, or about 20 percent of our economy; more than half of this amount is mandatory spending for entitlements. Increasing government spending is not the answer to our country's problems. It is time to get it under control with better solutions and better management of our federal government.

Balance the Budget and Eliminate Underperforming Programs

Congress has consistently refused to balance the budget and address the deficit. In fact, federal spending continues to grow at rates double inflation. This rate of growth in federal spending is not sustainable and must be brought under control. The following actions will result in better control of the growth of non-defense discretionary spending:

Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Ohio State has heard all year how they aren't good enough to beat an SEC school. After the pasting they got last year from Florida, they had to endure the media, the fans and probably their families expecting them to fail.

That made them mad. They came into this championship game with a chip on their shoulder and the backing of almost the entire ESPN staff (not that matters much, ESPN picked them last year too). They brought the #1 rated defense in all football and 'beanie' wells, the running back who made Michigan go away. They were ready to take it all.

LSU 'backed' into the game, some even say didn't deserve to be there (Oklahoma, USC, Georgia certainly would say it), much like Florida last year. ESPN hyped up the fact that LSU was playing basically a home game (Lee Corso ran hard with this, pumping up the Buckeyes) and was too 'fast' for OSU. LSU had the 3rd ranked defense, but lately they had given up quite a few yards and points to some 'low' competition.

The game kicked off and less than a minute and a half in, OSU had a 7 point lead ...

NEW ORLEANS -- Through an entire season of upsets and upheaval, teams moved in and out of the top of the polls as if it were a fleabag motel instead of the Ritz-Carlton. No one stayed long, and the ones that claimed they belonged didn't exactly look the part.

Until the last night of the season, that is. On the last night of the season, college football found an occupant for its penthouse.

Doug Benc/Getty ImagesFor the second time in five years, the Tigers are holding the crystal football.

The LSU Tigers are a dominant champion. They are a deserving champion. And as a fitting end to a season that never followed its script, they are college football's first two-loss champion.

LSU rolled over Ohio State 38-24 in the BCS Championship Game, becoming not only the first two-loss champion but the first two-time champion in the 10-year history of the BCS. That the Tigers managed to achieve both distinctions captures the uneven nature of their season, in which they lost two games in triple overtime and won three others in the final 90 seconds of regulation.

There would be no such thrills Monday night because LSU cut way down on its mistakes. The team that finished the season 118th in the nation in penalties per game (8.7) committed only four in the last, most important game. The Tigers (12-2) committed only one turnover. Ohio State (11-2), the team known for not beating itself, committed seven and three, respectively.

ESPNIt was a great game and a needed one ;) that win was the difference between being tied for 4th and tied for 1st in the 'pool'.